Improvement in the combination of steam and water power



T THUN-"BR," u l COMBINATION 0T STEAM AND WATER POWER. f No. v37,344, x Patented Jam.v 6, .1863.

,Usrrnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

. IMPROVEMENT lN THE COMBINATION 'OF STEAM A ND WATER POWER.

Specification forming pai-'t of Letters Patent No. 37,344, dated January 6, 18GB.

T0 all wwm it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ABRAHAM BUFFER, of Hagerstown, in th county ot' Washington and State ot' Maryland, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Steam and Water Powers Combined; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

In manyparts ot' the country the streams are so low in summer that the water-powers dependent upon such streams are either conlpelled to rest or runonly a part of the time. Often it is found advantageous to employ a steam-engine to temporarily 'replace these water-powers or to run in connection therewith while the water is low, the steam-power being put at rest, in order to save fuel and other. expenses, as soon as the water rises in 4'the stream.HV 'In such cases, and perhaps in some others, I believe it will prove economical to, employ the exhaust-steam in raising water according to the well-known principles ot' hydraulics or the raising of water by the use of a vacuum and atmospheric pressure. Accordingly I have constructed and put into actual operation a machine which, raising' its water by exhaust-steam, employs that water for turning a water-wheel.

The object of my invention is chieiiy to utilize exhaust-steam from, an engine necessarily employed in other work, and convert the `same to an available power in driving machinery, thus saving expense.

My invention consists in the combination of a water-wheel or water-wheelswith a steamgenerator or steam-generators for the purpose of elevating waterby means of the condensation of steam and atmospheric pressure, and then employing' such water for operating the water wheel or wheels.

It will be necessary in carrying out my plan to employ two or more chambers to receive the exhaust-steam, so that one chamber may be receiving steam while the other is receiving and discharging water. I propose to have two dams and ponds or reservoirs of water, one being placed above the water-wheel and the other below it. Vhen 'the water has been once used to turn the water-wheel, it iiows into the lower pond or reservoir, from which it is brought back to the upper pond by the In these drawings, Figure lis a side elevay tion of my machine. Fig. 2 is a top view of the same.

Iu the drawings,Fi g. 1, at A is seen a water'- wheel, which may be of any construction and employed for any desired purpose. At B and C, Fig. 1, are represented two pans,which may be regarded as the two ponds or reservoirs of water employed in driving the waterwheel A. The water from the upper pau or pond,-B, iiows upon the water-wheel through the spout or liurne D, thus giving motion to the wheel in the usual manner. 'As the water escapes from the wheel, it flows into the lower pan or reservoir, C, from which it may be brought back to the upper reservoir, as follows: The steam boiler or generator E may "be employed to drive the steam piston 0r engine shown in the drawings. This engine may be of the usual construction, with the cylinder K, piston-rod I, and provided with wheel L, and any other desired arrangement for driving machinery. In the drawings a small alcobol-lamp, F, is placedrunder the boiler, in-4 stead ot' a furnace, which in a large machine orestablishment may be ot 'usual construction. The exhaust-steam from the cylinder K may be conducted through tubes O O to the chambers N N', in order to expel the air from the latter. Itis so arranged that one of these chambers is irstlled with steam and then the other, so that one chamber is being iilled with water while the other is being lled with steam. When the chamber N, for iustance, is filledwith steam, the iow of steam thereto is cut oft', and the steam from the engine is then turned into the other chamber, N. At the same moment a jet of water islet into chamber N, condensing the steam therein and forming a vacuum. Now the water from reservoir C rushes up the pipe h, filling the cham-ber N ,y as above described. Then the other chamber, N', is filled in turn, and the water from both chambers tlows into the reser- Voir B, to be again employed in turning the Water-Wheel A.

In order to practically test my machine as 'above described, I Ihave resorted to temporary arrangements, especially in Jthe modes of Working the valves; but, the principles being illustrated, the details may be varied at the pleasure of the mechanic when a full-sized machine is constructed. 'In the steam-pipes- O and O', I have arranged valves and pistons RR', for cutting oft1 the steam. As the chamber N is being iilled with steam, the valve-rod R is drawn back by means ot leverfS, the lower end ot' which Works against a serie'sof pins on the WheellU. When the chamber N v is iilledWit-h steam, the lever S is released from the pins on Wheel U by the revolution ol the latter, and thusthe valve closes by the action of the coiled spring T. At the next moment the lever V strikes another pin on wheel U, and, being thus tripped, the upper end of this lever presses down the short aran- W, rocking thc shaft Y, and opening avalve, Z, admitting a jet ot Water into chamber N from the cistern ct. This water condenses the like manner, though it is usually closed by atmospheric pressure. The other chamber, N', bis iilled and' emptied in like manner. In this Way the Water is brought back from reservoir C into reservoir B, and may be used again and again for driving the Water-Wheel A. The boiler is provided with thefusual safety-valve, (j, held by a Weight, H. This and other details may be varied at the pleasure of the mechanic Without departing from my invention.

vMy invention may beadvautageous in connection With simple reservoirs Without any natura-l stream ot' Water and mill-fall. On a large scale it may be found necessary to employ more than two chambers.l If desired,

the steam may be sent direct from the boiler E through part ofl pipes O O Without going to the steam-cylinder or being used lfor driving machinery. In that case stopcocks will be necessary to direct the steam away from the steam-cylinder. A

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

The combination of a steam-generator or steam-genera tors Witha Waterwheel or Water- Wheels and chambers, or a chamber, for elevating Water by atmospheric pressure and driving a water Wheel or u' heels, substantially in the manner and for the purposes set forth.

ABRAHAM BUFFER. Witnesses:

G. BREED, D. Bnnnn. 

